Prof Balaraman Ravindran

Prof Balaraman Ravindran continues to shape India's AI research and policy landscape through his work spanning academia, governance, and national strategy. 

He was appointed to the United Nations' Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence, chaired the committee that drafted India's AI Governance Guidelines, contributed to the RBI's FREE-AI framework, and helped develop the Ministry of Health's Strategy for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare for India (SAHI).

As Founding Head of the Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI at IIT Madras, Prof Ravindran has consistently advocated for strengthening India's AI research ecosystem, indigenous model development, and responsible AI governance. Through his research, policy contributions, and public engagement, he has played a central role in shaping India's long-term AI roadmap while mentoring the next generation of AI researchers and entrepreneurs.

Prof Ravindran believes India's AI future depends on building data sovereignty and an indigenous AI stack, arguing that long-term competitiveness will come not only from sovereign foundation models but from owning the complete AI ecosystem, from data and infrastructure to applications and governance.